The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is going to launch 52 specific satellites for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) in support of the Indian Army.
“Space is the ultimate high ground and we are looking at launching 52 satellites for the purpose of intelligence gathering, surveillance and reconnaissance deployed across multiple orbits including Low Earth Orbit, Medium Earth Orbit and Geostationary Orbit to provide comprehensive coverage and resilience,” said Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Anil Chauhan speaking during a panel at the Indian DefSpace Symposium held at Manohar Parrikar Institute of Defence Studies and Analysis.
Announced Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Anil Chauhan at the Indian DefSpace Symposium held at the Manohar Parrikar Institute of Defence Studies and Analysis.
The symposium revolved around military space policy, the space industry and policy domains pertaining to Indian ambition of militarisation of outer space. The military space doctrine will be the guiding policy for the Armed Forces and marks a great advance in the evolution of national strategy and capability for monitoring threats, tracking adversary activity, and collecting real time intelligence beyond our national borders.
“The military satellites are crucial for monitoring borders with Pakistan and China, tracking maritime activities in the Indian Ocean Region and countering emerging threats of hypersonic missiles and UAV with advanced sensors, high resolution imaging systems and synthetic aperture radar capabilities to operate 24×7 in all weather conditions,” Uncovered a high-ranking ISRO official stating the new doctrine will provide clarity to the newly created Defence Space Agency (DSA) on the strategy and tactical leverage of space based assets.
The doctrine will focus on the growing threat of anti-satellite weapons, space debris and electronic warfare in space, to ensure that Indian space assets are secured and operational in hostile environments. India is the fourth nation after the US, Russia and China to have the ability to destroy a satellite in Low Earth Orbit to secure its strategic interests in space.
“Satellites are shrinking in size but growing in capabilities. India is witnessing a strategic shift from large satellites to proliferation and resilient constellations across multiple orbits,” noted former Indian Air Force (IAF) Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari highlighting the transformative trends in satellite technology.
The movement toward smaller satellites is a global trend driven by advances in miniaturisation, artificial intelligence and propulsion technology, with cheaper satellites of less than 500 kg. The small satellites are cheap and easy to build and launch to create constellations with redundancy and resilience, allowing them to have ISR capabilities to look for threats in real time if one of the satellites failed.
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